Anyone else notice how weird of a sensation this is? Now that I'm wearing clothes that are closer to my "real size" (according to my bone structure, this is somewhere between a loose XL and a tight L in the shirt, and probably about a 36 waistband normal cut pants), the cloth actually touches my body. It's taking a real mental shift for me to start thinking this is OK. I think it's a self-confidence thing; it's improving as my mind makes the shift from "I'm a fat disgusting slob who has to hide his body at all costs" to "I'm a normal looking guy with a decent body" -- I'm making progress, but it's slow!

I've noticing that the cut of clothes is different; I used to be 2XLT shirt -- the "T" (for Tall) was because I needed the extra length to cover my belly. Now I don't, and it's an adjustment to realize that my size is "just" XL. With my jeans, I wore Levi's 550's -- Relaxed Fits, aka "fat man jeans." Now, not only has my size (waistband) gone way down, but I'm finding that even jeans that fit appropriately in the waist and length are far too baggy in the butt and thighs. I have a butt (unlike a lot of white guys! :confused1:) so it's not just "disappearing ass syndrome" -- the fact is that I really shouldn't be wearing the baggy "fat guy cut" jeans anymore.

It can be a confusing journey, but it's fun to see all the changes in my shape and health!

Oh, I also just realized -- I'm more than halfway done with my weight loss. WOOHOO!

Edited August 28, 201015 yr by ouroborous

Awsome job!!! Yeah I can see how it would be a weird sensation to ware cloths that touch the body, I am not sure how I am going to handle that!

Oh, a man with a butt! LOL

I caught what you said about the clothes and relaxed fits, etc. on the other post. It makes so much sense.

I haven't gotten out yet to shop for "normal" clothes, so not sure about the fabric touching the body thing.

What I am finding though is that even though some of my old, smaller clothes fit now and look good, I still reach for something baggy. To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure how much of that is habit and how much of it is not being comfortable yet with my new shape. I know that sounds weird.

I have thought all along that I wouldn't buy clothes unless I had too until I was done losing. But, I now wonder if that's a big mistake. Wearing better fitting clothes would make me look and feel better. Also, it would likely make me more accountable if I felt any weight creeping back on.

We need pictures. Fashion Show!! Your public demands it.:w00t:

My God, yes! It's such a change. I realised just about a month or two ago that I'm actually (for the first time since I was about ten years old or so) thin enough to wear not only tight jeans with a huge shirt on top to hide all the excesses, but tight jeans and a skintight T-shirt! It feels weird, still, but I love it. I was so completely suspicious about this that I actually had a friend take some pictures of me wearing it, but actually true: no love handles. No nothing sticking out that shouldn't be. Mind you, I've been doing Pilates religiously for a year, that certainly helps holding things in!

That must feel great!! I am going to keep reminding myself why I am doing this... and I really appreciate your posts! They give me courage! I have been focusing on the wrong things heheh there is a benefit to the surgery too.. haha Yes pics are a must! : D

Well there won't be pics of more than my face for a few months since I'm still really shy about my tummy and so forth.

But I will say that the changes are amazing and surprising. I was trying to figure out what was different about how my pants fit the other day, and I suddenly realized: I have hipbones. For a non-heavy person, this sounds like "duh," but you fellow travelers on this path probably completely understand how amazed I was to re-discover those bones!

Oh yes, it is so wonderful when we rediscover our bones! I was laying on my stomach in bed and had to turn on my side because my hip bones were poking into the mattress. It was really nice;

I am about the same stage as you, really needing to wear smaller clothes as the baggie ones actually look worse on me. I specifically remember after visiting a customer site and having to dress up-- wanting to get out of the business attire into baggie clothes, and just this week I enjoyed wearing the nice clothes and staying in them.

I've been going through exactly the same thing. And I'm a female. The disappearing butt has been weird. I used to be able to set a table on my protruding behind. Now it is just nearly flat compared to the way it was. I've always had a bubble butt though.

Some of the clothes that I bought a month or so ago are already baggy. And you're right, they just don't look good. And the brands that I'm used to wearing have a bigger cut in the thighs and bottom. And even in a smaller size I don't fill them out. Very strange feeling.

I was about to think that I look great though but then I took a mirror and checked myself out from behind and egad, I do still have a big butt. I musta been one huge mama. You didn't catch me checking myself out when I weighed 220 lbs!

I had no idea that it would be so odd adjusting to the new sizes. My first clue to getting smaller was when I woke up one morning and I was lying on my back in bed and my stomach was concave instead of convex and I also felt my hip bones. I didn't realize that I hadn't felt them in such a long time. I just sorta ran my hands over my new bod and was shocked. It seemed like it happened overnight.

I can't imagine what it will feel like if I get to the same place that many sleeve people have - 5, 10 or even 20 lbs under goal. That must be very strange. You must feel really skinny at that point.

Oh, and yesterday I was trying on some jeans and slapped myself on the side of the hip, where the thigh begins. Nearly gave myself a bruise! And I still occasionally wake up at night because of sleeping on my side: without the padding on the inside of the thighs my knees hurt. Bone against bone, ouch.

What a welcome problem, Jolanda!

I was getting comments about my weight loss, but when I finally broke down and got more form-fitting clothes the comments became huge compliments. It took me a while to get over a lifetime of worry about fat rolls showing but then I discovered foundation garments which smooth things out (plus help keep skin from sagging).

Bjean, yes, I'm not complaining. This is just weird. Like I'm suddenly in a different country altogether. A stranger to myself, in some way. But of course it's unbelievably rewarding to be able to go from a size 24 to a size 10. Sometimes I don't recognise my own reflection if I walk past a shop window.

I would like to think that I'm wrong but I'm seriously beginning to be treated better by people in public. And when I speak, people actually look at me and respond instead of them ignoring me. What a sad commentary on the intolerance and discrimination that obese people have to deal with everyday.

My older sister has been obese nearly her whole life. No wonder she's in such a snit all the time when she has to deal with people in public. I never realized what all she's had to put up with from people. I do remember in the movies once there were two guys sitting behind us and they made terrible remarks about her and they didn't even care that we could hear them. She just sat there, turned red and took it.

There were lots of comments behind my back while I was fat and I pretended not to notice. It reminds me of when my son was in a rock band and wore his hair wild. People didn't seem to understand that he was just a kid with wild hair, not a freak or a thug or a threat to them in any way.

I would like to think that I'm wrong but I'm seriously beginning to be treated better by people in public. And when I speak, people actually look at me and respond instead of them ignoring me. What a sad commentary on the intolerance and discrimination that obese people have to deal with everyday.

My older sister has been obese nearly her whole life. No wonder she's in such a snit all the time when she has to deal with people in public. I never realized what all she's had to put up with from people. I do remember in the movies once there were two guys sitting behind us and they made terrible remarks about her and they didn't even care that we could hear them. She just sat there, turned red and took it.

There were lots of comments behind my back while I was fat and I pretended not to notice. It reminds me of when my son was in a rock band and wore his hair wild. People didn't seem to understand that he was just a kid with wild hair, not a freak or a thug or a threat to them in any way.

I wish you were wrong too, but you're not. Overweight people are treated like crap (at least that's been my experience). Which is sort of amazing when you consider that, in the US at least, most people are overweight or obese. In other words, we consider that the bulk of our population are targets for ridicule.

No wonder we're so neurotic!

I feel bad for the people still trapped in this cycle, but on a selfish level, I'm glad to be leaving the "fat barn."